School children planting vegetables. Source: moringasource.com
Public school students in Quezon City will soon discover the “joy of urban farming” as teachers and parents kicked off a project to create more green spaces in schools.
At the launching Wednesday, Education Secretary Armin Luistro challenged school principals in Metro Manila to be creative in growing plants in schools despite limited spaces for farming.
“There are ways to grow plants, vegetables and greens even with little space such as vertical, hanging and roof deck gardens, hydrophonics and others. There are a lot of technologies that maximize space now,” he said.
In his speech, Luistro asked the students to name their favorite vegetables although he did not get an enthusiastic response.
This prompted him to observe that vegetables are not very popular among children and this was to blame for the 500,000 cases of malnourished kids nationwide.
“The project aims to address [malnutrition] among students by allowing them to learn how to plant and harvest [vegetables] for their needs,” said Quezon City Vice Mayor Joy Belmonte who initiated the project.
City division schools superintendent Corazon Rubio said that the first batch of 20 school-beneficiaries had received seedlings and garden tools for the project while several teachers had undergone training on the program’s implementation.
Luistro, meanwhile, encouraged students to use what they learn in science and art in their farming techniques.
He said the vegetables could be used by the school in its feeding program or sold off to fund the seedlings for the next planting.
For Payatas Annex-B Elementary School principal Cesar Vires, the project will hone students’ skills in applying what they learn in school in their own homes.
“Not many children see the practical side of gardening anymore. It would help them save money when they can harvest their own vegetables,” he said.
Another principal, Jose Hilario from Bayanihan Elementary School, said they intend to use what they harvest to support the school seeding program.